I Am Malala has forced people all over the world to reanalyze whether education should be a universal right. It was a memoir, but it reached an audience that crossed borders as it characterized the struggle that girls all over the world are facing every day in search for education. As The Washington Post reports, Malala’s story is more than a good read; it is a call to look critically at an issue that is commonly forgotten. Malala’s courage and her passion are what have propelled the issue of girls’ education, of children’s education into the forefront of the global consciousness. She has become such a strong force that in 2014 she was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize. The BBC reports that Malala has called for people to develop an educational system for Syrian refugees. Malala is her story’s continuing legacy, a reminder of the fact that there are pockets of people that are at risk for being ‘forgotten’ and left behind.
As stated in the BBC, Malala’s story is not entirely unique. There are children all over the world who are denied access to education. The BBC article tells that Malala wrote her story to show the importance of education, stating that it should be accessible to every child. I Am Malala is then less of a memoir and more of a call for people to act against the forces that wish to prevent development and growth in society. But it also questions what we as individuals are doing to combat such prominent issues. It reminds us that education is an equalizer, but for it to work at balancing the scales everyone must participate.
The question then becomes, what can be done now that that story has been told? There are people being targeted for trying to educate others, what could the international community do to support those people? Is it responsible for improving educational systems? In regions in which discrimination is interwoven with the fabric of society something more than fancy words are needed to create lasting change. A certain amount of resources are needed to ensure that children are getting some form of education. Focusing resources and time into universal access to education could distract, or move resources away, from issues such as pollution, food shortages, and medical care. Although there could be certain consequences as a result of working for the improvement of educational access, societies need educated citizens to thrive. Increasing access to education would mean creating citizens who can target and collaborate on local and international issues. From the international response to I Am Malala it is clear that there are people who, like Malala, want to learn. It is then necessary that those privileged individuals who have received an education become advocates for those who need one.
Kwezi
September 19, 2016 — 8:53 pm
‘Is it (the international community) responsible for improving educational systems?’ This challenging question is most relevant today than it’s ever been – with the rate of globalisation at its peak. Unfortunately, the ‘sovereign state’ of countries such as Pakistan don’t necessarily have to comply with the international community to equalize education between boys and girls. Areas such as education, medical care etc. are said to only be the state’s responsibility. Most argue that the international community, in this case, mainly consists of developed countries such as the USA (‘The West’). The idea of ‘The West’ trying to change the educational system angers most Pakistanis, as they view it as a way of coercion by making Islam/Pakistani governance look bad in public eye. Many in Pakistan view Malala as a traitor for ‘joining forces with the West’ and even banned her book in most private schools.